The present invention relates in general to a self-contained underwater drainage system, and more particularly, to such a system including a container assembly for draining a retained liquid therefrom in an underwater environment, for example, when loading and sealing a container for storage of nuclear fuel pellets, radiation emitting material, and the like, while the container is maintained in a radiation shielding media such as submerged in a pool of water.
In the operation of a nuclear reactor, it is periodically required that the spent nuclear fuel pellets or other radiation emitting material be removed from the reactor core and stored for safe transport to a long term storage area or processing station. As the nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material are a source of dangerous nuclear radiation, which radiation can be lethal, it is required that the reactor operators be shielded from the radiation during placement of the nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material within a shipping or storage container. Typically, this shielding takes the form of a pool of water having a depth of the order of fifteen feet. The nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material, along with the container, are placed submerged at the bottom of the pool whereat the nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material are placed into the container which is then sealed and brought to the surface for storage or shipment. This container, however, is filled with water along with the nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material. The presence of such water in the container can present a substantial problem with respect to some types of radiation emitting material which require that the container be drained of all water prior to storage or shipment. To this end, there is presently unknown in the prior art the construction of a container which can be loaded with nuclear fuel pellets or radiation emitting material, drained of water, and then sealed, all while being maintained at the bottom of a fifteen foot pool of water, and if required, placed in a larger container for ultimate shielding during shipment or storage.
Accordingly, it can be appreciated that there is an unsolved need for a self-contained underwater drainage system which is adapted for loading nuclear fuel elements or radioactive emitting material into a container while positioned at the bottom of a fifteen foot pool of water, and then for draining all retained water therefrom prior to removal of the container from its underwater location so as to minimize operator exposure to any radiation and the resulting dangers.